Clothes wringer



A. W. G. GOODE CLOTHES WRINGEJR Nov. 5, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 16. 1956 A. W. G. GOODE CLOTHES WRINGER Nov. 5, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 16, 1956 United States Patent Ofiice Patented Nov. 5, 1957 CLOTHES WRlN GER Archibald William George Goode, Perivale, Greenford,

England, assignor to The Hoover Company, North Canton, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application February 16, 1956, Serial No. 566,016

Claims priority, application Great Britain March 25, 1955 Claims. (Cl. 68-259) The present invention relates to clothes wringers and more particularly to automatically releasing the rollers when the latter are separated an abnormal distance.

An object of the invention is to provide a clothes wringer having a torsion bar spring to urge the rollers together and means actuated when the rollers are separated a predetermined distance to automatically release the force of the torsion bar on the rollers to permit unrestricted separation of the latter. Another object is to provide manually operated means to release the pressure between the rollers in addition to the automatic separation of the rollers. Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a perspective view of the wringer with the rollers separated,

Figure 2 is an end view with parts broken away showing the wringer closed and with the manual and automatic means in operative positions,

Figure 3 is a fragmentary section along the line 33 in Figure 2,

Figure 4 is a rear view partly in section with parts broken away showing the wringer closed, and

Figure 5 is a section along the line 5-5 in Figure 4.

The embodiment of the invention herein disclosed is applied to a wringer of the type described in the application of Frederick Roy Sibbald, Serial No. 517,833, filed June 24,1955.

In the present invention the wringer comprises lower and upper frame members and 11, the latter having spaced bearings 12 for rotatably supporting an upper roller 13, while the lower frame member 10 has an arcuate open faced bearing 14 for one end of a lower roller 15, and also a bearing 16 for a driving stub shaft 17 provided with a pair of projecting driving pins 18 which engage a cooperating slot 19 in the other end of the lower roller 15. In order to power drive the lower roller the stub shaft 17 engages a Worm gear 20 disposed in a housing 21 integral with the lower frame member 10. The housing 21 may be mounted on a washing machine to support the wringer thereon and the worm gear 20 connected to a power source to rotate the lower wringer 15, in a manner well known in the art.

The two frame members 10 and 11 are hinged together about an axis parallel to the rollers by a torsion bar spring 24 passing through a pair of lugs 25 depending from the upper member 11 and through a pair of lugs 26 extending upwardly from the lower member 10. The center portion 27 of the torsion bar 24 is bowed upwardly from the engaging surfaces of the rollers so as not to interfere with the clothes as they pass between the rollers 13 and 15. One end of the torsion bar 24 is bent at right angles to form an operating arm 28, and the opposite end 29 is enlarged and provided with a key 30 which rigidly secures one end 31 of a stressing arm 32 to the torsion bar 24. A retaining ring 33 is seated in an exterior groove of the enlarged end 29 and bears against the upper frame member 11 to prevent longitudinal movement of the torsion bar. The opposite end of the stressing arm 32 is bifurcated at 34, as shown in Figures 1 and 5, and an adjusting bolt 35 passes therethrough and is threaded into the lower fixed frame member 10.

When the torsion bar 24 is unstressed its operating arm 28 rests on a raised stop plate 36 secured to the lower frame member 10 and the bifurcated end 34 of the stressing arm is spaced from the surface of the frame member 10, whereby tightening of the adjusting screw 35 moves the end 34 of the stressing arm 32 toward the frame member 10 to prestress the torsion bar 24. The extent to which torsion bar 24 is stressed is controlled by the thickness of a spacing sleeve 37 disposed about the bolt 35 and between the bifurcated end 34 and the frame member 10.

Rotatably mounted in the upper frame member 11, adjacent the torsion bar operating arm 28, is a locking shaft 38 having a manually operated handle 39 at its upper end above the frame member 11, and the shaft is provided at its lower end with a lateral detent or foot 40 which can be rotated by the handle 39 to extend underneath the operating arm 28 or be shifted clear of the latter as shown in Figures 1 and 2. The upper surface 41 of the detent 40 projects slightly above the stop plate 36 and is inclined to initially engage the operating arm 28 as the shaft 38 is rotated to shift the detent 40 under the operating arm 28 to thereby lift the latter and transfer the torsion bar pressure from the stop plate 36 to the upper frame member 11 and thus to the rollers 13 and 15.

When the latch detent 40 engages the operating arm 28 the wringer is in its closed position and the manual release handle 39 projects forwardly at an angle of about 45 degrees with respect to the longitudinal axes of the rollers 13 and 15. whereby the handle is available to the operator for manipulation in case of an emergency. The detent latch 40 is so arranged with respect to the operating arm 28 that upon rotation of the handle either toward or away from the rollers the detent will be moved out of engagement with the arm 28 to release the rollers.

A torsion spring 42 is arranged about the enlarged portion 29 of the torsion bar 30 and has one end 43 engaging the fixed frame member 10 and its other end 44 abutting a rib 45 on the movable upper frame member 11, whereby upon shifting the handle 39 to its unlocked position the spring 42 will pivot the upper frame member 11 about the torsion bar 24 and raise the upper roller 13 away from the lower roller 15. The spring 42 is weaker than the stress in the torsion bar 24 so as not to interfere with the action of the latter in maintaining the rollers in operative relation for removing water from the clothes being passed between the rollers.

In addition to releasing the rollers manually by operation of the handle 39 I provide an automatic release which functions when the rollers are separated beyond a predetermined distance due to, for example. passing a great quantity of clothes between the rollers or if the operator accidentally places her hands between the rollers. The safety device comprises a cam member 50 having a base 51 and an upstanding portion 52. The base 51 is secured by screws 53 to the fixed lower frame member 10 and the portion 52 is arranged alongside the torsion bar operating arm 28. The forward end of the portion 52 has a vertical surface 54 rearwardly of the end 55 of the torsion bar operating arm 28 and terminates in an upwardly and forwardly inclined cam surface 56 which projects beyond the end 55 of the operating arm 28.

When the handle 39 has been moved to close the wringer the locking detent 4!] is positioned beneath the operating arm 28 and also beneath the cam surface 56 but is spaced therefrom as shown in Figure 2. During normal operation the frame member 11 and latched detent 40 move upwardly against the stress of the torsion bar 24 without the latching detent 40 engaging the cam surface 56. When the rollers are separated a predetermined distance the latch 40 engages the cam surface 56 and the latter rotates the latch 40 and its shaft 38 and upon continued separation of the rollers the detent 4t! clears the end 55 of the operating arm 28 to release the upper frame member from the stress of the torsion bar 24, whereby the elevating spring 42 can function to raise the frame 11 to the open position shown in Figure 1.

From the foregoing it will be perceived that the handle 39 enables the rollers to be manually released by the operator, and also the cam 56 automatically releases the rollers when the latter have become separated an abnormal distance to thereby provide insurance against serious injury, since it is completely automatic and requires no conscious action on the part of the user.

While I have shown and described but one embodiment of my invention, it is to be understood that this embodiment is to be taken as illustrative only and not in a limiting sense. I do not wish to be limited to the particular structure shown and described but to include all equivalent variations except as limited by the scope of the claims.

I claim:

1. A clothes wringer comprising: a. pair of pivotally connected frame members, means rotatably mounting a roller in each of said frame members, means mounting a torsion bar spring having portions in each of said frame members, means rigidly securing one end of said torsion bar to one of said frame members, the other end of said torsion bar being movable against the spring pressure of said bar, latch means on the other of said frame members and movable into engagement with said other end of said torsion bar to transfer the spring pressure to said rollers and position the latter in operative relation for the reception of clothes, cam means on said one frame member and arranged to disconnect said latch means from said torsion bar when said rollers are forced apart an abnormal distance to thereby release the spring pressure on said frame members for separation of said rollers unrestricted by torsion bar pressure.

2. A clothes wringer as described in claim 1, and means on said latch means extending beyond said frame members and provided with a handle for manual operation to release said latch means out of engagement with said torsion bar for separation of said rollers.

3. A clothes wringer as described in claim 1, and said torsion bar forming a hinge pin for said frame members about an axis spaced from and parallel to the axes of said rollers.

4. A clothes Wringer as described in claim 1, and said movable end of said torsion bar having an offset operating arm, said cam means arranged along said operating arm, said latch means engaging said operating arm to provide operating pressure between said rollers, and said cam means disengaging said latch arm from said operating means upon abnormal separation of said rollers against torsion spring pressure to release said frame members for said unrestricted separation of said rollers.

5. A clothes wringer as described in claim 4, and said torsion bar forming a hinge pin for said frame members about an axis spaced from and parallel to the axes of said rollers.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

